How to Read an IEP: Maine State IEP Guide

Over 20% of students in Maine have IEPs, the second highest rate in the country. Maine’s Unified Special Education Regulation (MUSER; 20-A MRSA  Ch. 101) outlines special education procedures for the almost 35,000 students with IEPs. The 263 page chapter specifies everything from documentation procedures for interventions in general education to the calculations for state special education subsidies. The sections on IEP teams, qualifying, and IEPs are equally comprehensive, including the procedures for determining each of the disability categories. Maine also, helpfully, has a separate special education procedure manual. It includes blank sections of IEPs with explanations on how to complete each, and examples of what a strong section might include. 

In other words, relative to other states, Maine provides clear, strong, central guidance on special education and has made those materials easy to find on the state website. Materials include blank IEPs and written notices, as well as guidance on facilitating student-led IEPs. The state also provides the Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf, with residential programming for high school students. And, through Maine CITE, the state provides a centralized hug for assistive technology access. Blazer Works (a staffing organization, so take with a grain of salt) rates Maine as the third best state in the country for special education for academic success, inclusion, graduation rates, early intervention, and access to needed services. 

For parent resources, contact the Maine Parent Federation (Maine’s PTI),  Disability Rights Maine or the Maine Developmental Disabilities Council.

To see what IEPs look like in Maine– and guidance on how to read IEPs (and how to know if they are well written!), check out the IEP section guide below.